UK Foo Fighters join the top flight at Monteys

The UK Foo Fighters.

Published:09:05Thursday 01 May 2014

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By Gig Scene Editor Graham Chalmers

Who would have thought it?

When I hooked up with local singer and guitarist Jay Apperley at a Foo Fighters show at Sheffield Arena around 2007 or so, I’d never guess that six years later he himself would be on stage as Dave Grohl in 02 Academy venues across the UK.

Jay had told me he was planning to convert his impressive originals band Speedsta into a sort of Foo Fighters covers act, after playing quite a few gigs in small venues in the Harrogate area.

I wished him well and followed the band’s first baby steps at venues like The Alexandra in Harrogate and then thought nothing more of it.

Well, lo and behold, now he’s back with his band on Friday, May 2 at Monteys Rock Café on Harrogate.

It has to be said that tomorrow’s show is now a small gig for the UK Foo Fighters.

Jay and his group tend to attract a minor amount of pandemonium wherever they go these days – sometimes before they’ve even got on stage to play the likes of Times Like These, This Is A Call, Learn to Fly or Everlong.

The recent outbreak involved the band in a show at the Isle of Man TT Races.

It seems the island thought the genuine Foo Fighters themselves were going to perform, word spreading through Manx Radio and the usual social media.

The rumour was only laid to rest when the great Dave Grohl himself tweeted that the band weren’t playing, well, the real ones at least.

Rave reviews now follow in the UK Foo Fighters’ wake. The Nottingham Post hailed the band thus: “The band recreate the true vibe of the Foo Fighters’ live experience. The vocalist looks like the spitting image of Dave Grohl and has Grohl down to a tee.”

It’s all a long way from the days Jay was working as a manager at Stratstone BMW dealership in Pannal.

Incidentally, Monteys has been giving a great boost to the Harrogate live scene in the last few weeks with shows by MFOR and The Wilde and more to come from the likes of Idlefish, who play Monteys this Bank Holiday Sunday, and The MG Band and the UK Foo Fighters, obviously.